Promo Close-Up - Slam Dunk

Live Event Campaign Sparks Client Praise

Sep 1, 2012 – by Jennifer Vishnevsky

When InkHead Promotional Products (asi/231159) was approached by the Slamdance Film Festival to sponsor its event, the Atlanta-based distributor was ready for some fun. The Slamdance Film Festival is an annual event held in Utah at the same time as the Sundance Film Festival. Slamdance is reserved for independent films.

Every year, Slamdance's staff orders branded lanyards to hold the passes for the event. Kelly Calligan, sponsorship and marketing manager with the organization, did an Internet search to find a new company to provide them this year, and InkHead caught her eye. She noted that InkHead had a very inviting and organized site that offered a wide variety of what Slamdance was looking for. "InkHead's success starts with a website that stood out from its competitors," says Jill Konrath, author of SNAP Selling and Selling to Big Companies. "It's what got them in the game."

This year, the festival's theme centered on candy, and the main imagery was similar to a LifeSaver. "We had the idea of handing out Slamdance candy at the festival, so I decided to check out what InkHead had available," says Calligan. "Much to my surprise, InkHead could print labels on actual LifeSavers that looked identical to this year's central artwork. This was without a doubt one of the coolest things at the festival this year and earned our marketing team a lot of praise."

Konrath points out that it was InkHead's creativity that won the deal. "They delighted their prospect by proposing a unique solution that tied in closely with Slamdance's theme," she says.

InkHead provided three items for the event: custom-label LifeSavers candies, lanyards with a bull clip and a concert pass holder. Two days before the event, Slamdance reached out for 200 more lanyards and concert pass holders. Supplier SnugZ USA (asi/88060) was able to print the lanyards and offered a suitable alternative concert pass that InkHead delivered to Park City, UT, in less than 24 hours.

The distributor is very pleased with the amount of buzz it's drummed up. "What's more, the partnership with Slamdance represents an area we're focusing on heavily this year – events and event marketing," says Michael Ollinger, Internet marketing coordinator for InkHead. "So far, we've received 10 orders from filmmakers directly as a result of the sponsorship."

Konrath notes that for today's busy prospects, it's no longer sufficient to "meet their needs or provide good service. They demand much more," she says. "That's why InkHead was able to quickly pick up 10 new customers. To further capitalize on this success, I'd suggest they aggressively pursue more business in this market niche."

Ollinger points out that it's important to stay ahead of the game. "You never know what the client will need in the eleventh hour before the event," he says. "For example, we received a request from Slamdance organizers two days before the event was set to start for more lanyards and badge holders. Thanks to our relationship with the folks over at SnugZ, whose facilities are located less than 50 miles away from the event, we were able to go above and beyond for the client."

Konrath believes that the winning formula was a well-designed website, creative solution and exceptional service. "By doing all this, Ollinger and InkHead stood out from their competitors, something that's hard to do in this marketplace," she says.